2-Minute Review

Let's cut through the noise, and get to the crux of it. 19+ Expert Reviews analysed and summarised by the PhoneCurry Editorial Team, in a short and sweet 2-minute review.

Design

Arguably the most sumptuous, and beautifully designed Android phone available today - made almost entirely of glass, with a mirror finish - giving it a really unique, handsome, and bold aesthetic above anything else - it's drop-dead gorgeous

Gorilla Glass 5 on the front and back

Its back is curved on to the phone’s four corners so it looks as though the device has been built as a whole rather than by slapping several different parts together - even more significantly, the U Ultra’s glass has been ionised so that even its black edition changes colour according to the light around you - it’s an effect that's difficult to describe, but pick up the handset yourself and its subtle shimmers and reflections are sure to set your heart aflutter

Its 170g weight barely registers in your hands, and at 8mm thin, it's a slight device, but not so much that it feels insubstantial

Its fingerprint scanner is front-facing, sitting just under the phone’s screen, and works like a treat - it’s fast and accurate

Pretty large and bulky size, so might not suit you if you have small hands or value pocket-ability

The glass construction, of course, makes it ridiculously prone to smudges, scratches and if you are not careful, glass shatters - even though HTC says it’ll survive a fall of about a metre

The sensible thing to do therefore might be to get a case that’ll cover up this vulnerability, but clearly that’s a less than ideal solution as it means you don't then get to gaze on every inch of its beautiful design

Display

Also has a secondary screen - a thin 2.05in strip for instant notifications-related gratification - while it’s certainly not essential, it can end up being pretty useful

That’s not all this secondary screen can do either - when your U Ultra is unlocked it’ll show you upcoming calendar events, reminders you’ve set yourself and a 12-hour weather forecast for your location, among other things

The U Ultra’s secondary screen isn’t always-on - it wakes up when you get a notification or flip your phone up - its 160 x 1040 resolution ensures you can always read what’s onscreen and HTC has designed the thing to work with all the apps you’d want - that means WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Gmail and many more

Software

HTC Sense UI on top of Android is one of the better Android UIs around

Performance

One of the most powerful phones you can buy in terms of speed/performance, with the same internals as the Google Pixel - chomps through even the most graphically demanding games without breaking a sweat

Camera

Decent rear camera - though not quite up to the level of other flagships